A Titan's Rage
by Lexi Heartfilia
Summary: Sequel to Thalia the Titan! The Scouting Legion have heard that a new threat has risen, so they are heading into Wall Rose to check it out. The Legion have split up into squads to cover more area. Though what they didn't know was that another bigger threat was amongst them.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Over the past 2 weeks much has happened. She finally unleashed her true power and she managed to save many lives. Not only that, she got the man of her dreams and her sister back. Talk about hitting 2 birds with one stone. Finally, she had thought that she may get a break, a chance to enjoy everyone being alive, but no, another threat arose and now she was making her way through the city on horseback.

"These basterds need to cut us some slack!" a black haired girl shouted. She had stormy grey eyes and shadow black hair. Her build athletic and quick.

"Talk about bad timing!" a boy shouted. He was blonde with azure blue eyes that held thoughts, plans, genius plans and so much curiosity.

The horses came to a slower pace, until they stopped completely. Hanji turned around to face the Scouts that had been following her.

"The Beast Titan is somewhere within Wall Rose. From the information that the lieutenants have told me, we think that it is a human wrapped in a titan body. Also, it seems that there have also been titan sightings." Everyone gave a surprised yelp.

"They've breached the wall…?" the blackette wondered out loud.

"Scouts have been sent out already to locate the Beast Titan. A red smoke signal will be shot into the air once it is found. I want 2 squadrons to surround the wall, one east and one west. I also want the rest of the Scouts here to scout out the interior and try and find any survivors, if there are, bring them back to the wall. The garrisons will await your arrival and you will then take and carry the survivors through the wall safely into Wall Sina," Hanji explained.

"Yes ma'am!"

"Also, one more thing! I want a titan shifter in each group; none are to be in the same group. If worst comes to worst then we might need the strength of another titan to help," Hanji said. Eren looked over at Thalia worriedly.

"Hey, I'll be fine. Honestly, it's you I'm worried about," she smiled weakly. Eren leaned and gave her a kiss on the head.

"You better not die," he said. Astrid came and punched him lightly in the arm.

"It's fine Jaeger, she'll be with me," she said.

"And us," a male voice said. The three turned to see 2 familiar faces.

"Reigner, Bertholt," Eren said. The 2 boys grinned.

"She'll be safe," Bertholt said, clasping Eren's shoulder. Eren nodded and looked at Astrid.

"Is Corporal going to be with you?" he asked. Astrid raised an eyebrow.

"Who? Levi? No, he is going to be with Hanji, Erwin and a few other Scouts, they are going to be in the interior scouting out for titans and looking for village survivors. They are supposed to be a lot of villages within Wall Rose. This mission is suicidal and may take a while," Astrid explained. Mikasa and Armin then trotted up.

"We're with you Eren, along with Jean," Armin said. Eren supressed the urge to roll his eyes. Time with Jean? Oh joy.

"Got to say, I wasn't expecting to be tossed right into this right away," Thalia said. Annie came up behind her sister.

"I agree, though I already have enough stress on my back. When this is over and if I'm not dead I need to still go through punishment," Annie said.

"Yeah, oh, Annie who is in your group?" Thalia asked.

"Ymir, Krista, Connie and Sasha," she said. "They wanted an extra in case the whole "hugging-my-sister-and-wanting-to-join-the-Scouts" thing was all a bluff, which it wasn't, but you know how Scouts can be," Annie said, rubbing her neck.

"It's just a precaution, hopefully that whole situation will have blown over soon," Armin said.

"Scouts saddle up, we're about to leave!" a voice called.

"Be careful out there," Annie said, putting a hand on Thalia's shoulder.

"Back at you, but don't worry, I got Ash, Reigner and Bertholt with me," Thalia smirked. Annie's eyes widened a little and she met the 2 boy's eyes. Their expression hardened and Annie looked like she wanted to cry. "Annie? You okay?" Thalia asked. She kept her eyes locked on Reigner and Bertholt and nodded.

"Yeah, perfectly fine," she said. Her voice was emotionless and cold. She turned and headed to the front of the group to meet up with her squad. Astrid turned to the 2 men.

"What the hell was that?" she asked. They both shrugged.

"Beats me," Reigner said.

The gates opened and the Scouts charged out of the city and into Wall Rose. Thalia, Astrid, Reigner and Bertholt went along the east side of the wall, while Eren, Mikasa, Armin and Jean went west and Annie, Sasha, Connie, Krista and Ymir went through the center.

As she ran, Annie stared at the ground speeding past her, deep in thought.

 _I thought they were going to let this go once I joined the Scouts?_ she thought. _Are they really going to make their move?_ she asked herself. She grits her teeth. If they were going to attempt this plan while they had Thalia alone, then things are going to get ugly, fast. Not only will the Scouts think she had something to do with this, but she can only imagine what Eren would do…she doesn't want to imagine it, but let's just say, Eren can be the very definition of hell if he really tried.

 _Never mind this_ Annie thought. _I just need to hope that they're not smart enough to take advantage of the situation. The fact that the titan shifters have split up is like them putting their hands out and asking to be handcuffed. They have Thalia alone, and she is the one they really want._

"Annie! Snap out of it!" Sasha shouted, as she ran alongside the blonde. Annie blinked and looked at the brunette.

"What?" she asked.

"We're coming up to the first village and we can't have you zoning out like that if we run into any of our little titan friends," Sasha explained. Annie nodded and they both sped up.

Annie's squad entered the village with caution. As they walked through, they noticed that it was dead quiet and completely deserted. The only sound that was heard was the horse's hoofs on the grass.

"Where is everyone?" Krista voiced, breaking the eerie silence.

"They couldn't have evacuated, we would have saw them and with titan's lingering they would have thought it be best to stay indoors and hide," Ymir said glaring at her surroundings. The squad captain sighed and turned to the group.

"I want us to split into smaller groups and scout the village, send someone if you find any survivors or clues as to where everyone went," she explained. She then leaned into Ymir and Sasha, who were near her. "Oh, and be sure to keep an eye on Annie, we wouldn't want to have a bigger problem than we already do," she whispered, though, Annie's instincts and abilities to sense have been altered since she is a titan shifter. She rolled her eyes and looked at Krista, who smiled nervously. "Right, so split up and meet back here in half an hour," she ordered.

"Yes ma'am!"

Annie, Sasha, Krista, Ymir and Connie walked through the village on horseback alert and steady. It may seem quiet but they weren't taking any chances.

"It's strange, isn't it?" Krista said. "The houses barely look damaged, so where is everyone if the titan's haven't invaded?" Krista asked.

"Honestly, anything could have happened, but I still don't get where the people could have gone at this point. They wouldn't have made it far without the Scouts finding them and no one has been taken to Wall Sina as far as we know," Connie said. Annie sighed and closed her eyes, keeping her titan instincts intact.

"There is something we are missing," Annie said. "There-," she paused. She heard a whimper. She stopped and turned to her left.

"Annie?" Sasha asked.

"I hear something," Annie said, climbing off her horse. She drew a blade and followed the sound of life. She looked through windows, in corners to find the source and when she finally saw it, she gasped. In a house, there was a 4 meter titan gnawing on a woman. In the house, crying was a little girl. "Oh my gods!" Annie cried. She ran at the titan and sliced through the nape. It fell forward and the woman gasped a breath. Annie could see and sense the life draining out of her.

The rest came rushing in and stared wide eyed at the scene. Sasha and Krista rushed to the girl's side picking her up. The woman was lying in a pool of her own blood.

"Get…my daughter…t-to safety…" she said, in her last breath before she died of blood loss. They only sat there, stunned. Ymir turned to the door, expectantly.

"How…how did the titan get through the door without smashing it to bits?" she asked.

"I don't know, but we need to signal the others to take this girl to safety," Krista replied, as Sasha grabbed the girl's hand. The others nodded, before they rushed out of the house and Connie rushed off to find the others.


	2. Chapter 2

Meanwhile, with Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean and some other Scouts, they scouted out the west side of Wall Rose, in case it was breached. So far, nothing.

As they ran, Eren was spacing out. He was thinking about the looks that were exchanged between Annie, Bertoldt and Reigner. He couldn't help but feel that there was something going on between them that no one else knows. He just hopes that he is being paranoid.

"Incoming!" a voice shouted. Eren looked up and saw a group of 4 titans. One was a 4 meter; one was a 10 meter, a 7 meter and a 5 meter.

"Captain! Do we engage!?" another voice asked. There was a beat of silence, until the captain spoke.

"Take them out! We want to scout the wall with minimum titans!" he answered. A few Scouts in front of Eren flew off their horses and towards the 4 titans that were headed their direction. They didn't seem like a threat, but the fact that they haven't found the breach yet, is a little worrisome. Before he could think anymore, Mikasa and Armin came up beside him.

"How are you holding up?" Mikasa asked.

"You have been quiet, it's kind of scary," Armin added.

"Honestly, I've been thinking about Bertholt, Annie and Reigner," Eren replied. They raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" Mikasa asked.

"You didn't see it? They way that Annie looked at the 2 when Thalia had said she was in a group with them?" Eren asked.

"Now that you mention it, there was something about the way she looked at them. Almost as if she is expecting something to happen. That she knew something we didn't," Armin explained.

"Well, whatever it is, I have a feeling that it has something to do with either Astrid or Thalia," Eren growled.

"Eren, let's not jump to conclusions. These are our friends we are talking about," Mikasa warned.

"Yeah, but we don't want to be too carefree. Just make sure not to let your guard down," Armin said.

"Jaeger, Arlert, Ackerman, get moving!"

"Yes Sir!"

Eren gritted his teeth. He didn't like that he was separated from the others. He would have felt more comfortable if they were all together, so if any threat other than the Beast Titan arose they could take it on together. Besides, he doesn't want to regroup and find some people he cared about dead, and knowing too late.

 _Why am I feeling like this?_ Eren asked himself. _Why am I questioning my comrades? They have been through hell, like the rest of us, and yet I am questioning their loyalty. I guess the whole thing with Annie threw me off. I mean for all we know, we may have more enemies among us…and I don't want to be caught by surprise… I am hoping I am just being paranoid._

"Come on Eren! We have more titans up ahead!" Mikasa called over her shoulder. Eren took a breath and urged his horse to go faster.

Thalia looked left and right, in search for any threats. She was happy they hadn't encountered any titans yet. She wasn't mentally prepared for any fight. Astrid stayed by her side constantly snapping her out of her exhausted daze. She was tired and physically exhausted. The fight with Annie took a lot out of her, not to mention she got out of bed almost immediately when she woke up. Then she was tossed into this jumbled mess. She was a bit frustrated they charged into this blindly. I mean, yes, they had another threat, but no plan of action except for what Erwin had already laid out on the table. His plan was pretty simple if you ask Thalia. Run around like suicidal freaks to catch a big monkey man and save Wall Rose, after that she may get herself a slice of cake. The point remains that, well, and though she will never say this out loud, she had no idea what the hell was going on. I mean, what do they do when they find the Beast Titan? Maybe she could share her cake with him…

"Thalia!" Astrid said. Thalia's eyes widened and she blinked.

"What?" she asked.

"You good?" Astrid asked. When Thalia nodded she continued speaking. "We are coming up to an outer village. The captain sent someone to let the interior Scouts know that we will be searching it," Astrid explained.

"Alright, what are we looking for exactly?" Thalia asked.

"Well, since we haven't seen any titans, we believe that maybe this village still has survivors and we can take them back to Wall Sina."

"Right! So survivors!" Astrid nodded and they sped up towards the village.

The village was bigger than an average village. It had 2 floor buildings and 4 watchtowers in the outer area, a good place to seek shelter if titans ever attack. For as far as Thalia and Astrid could see, there were no sign of village people.

"How would it sound if I said I wasn't surprised?" Thalia asked. Astrid sighed.

"Not crazy at all…" she said.

"Alright Scouts listen up!" the captain shouted, gaining everyone's attention. "It will be sundown soon we'll rest up in one of the towers. But I first want everyone to split up and see if we can find any villagers or clues!" Everyone agreed and went their separate ways.

Astrid immediately went to Thalia's side, and Bertoldt and Reigner said they would tag along, just because Eren would kill them if he found out she was hurt and they weren't there to protect her. Even though Thalia insists she can take care of herself, Eren still is as persistent as ever. Though Thalia is secretly touched, but don't tell Eren that. She'll never hear the end of that. Eren saying that he told her so.

Thalia hopped off her horse, looking around, the other 3 following suite.

"So what exactly are we looking for?" Reigner asked, tying his horse to a fence. Thalia took a breath and looked around the village. The sun was going down soon and the towers seemed to glow in the evening light. They were mighty and stood for power.

"I don't know exactly, just anything out of the ordinary," Astrid said.

"Do we want to split up?" Thalia asked.

"No!" Bertoldt and Reigner both said. Thalia and Astrid raised an eyebrow.

"Why not?" Astrid asked.

"Well…" Reigner started. He glanced at Bertoldt.

"We wouldn't want anything to happen to you," Bertoldt said. Reigner nodded.

"I mean, God only knows what Eren and Levi would do," Reigner said. Both girls sighed.

"Fine, we'll stay together, but just know, you aren't our babysitters," Thalia said, walking away with Astrid on her tail. But if they stayed a little longer, they would have seen the look that Bertoldt and Reigner shared.

The 4 Scouts wandered the village and found nothing. It was getting darker by the minute and they haven't ran into any others as of yet, but they weren't worried, it was a pretty big village.

"There's nothing here, the only people who are here is us," Reigner said.

"But why?" Thalia asked. "I mean, with a village this big, people were bound to be here and yet it's completely deserted." Astrid looked in the window of a house.

"If there is nothing to see, then maybe we should meet back up with the others…" Astrid suggested.

"I guess we could do that, I'm sure that everyone is having about the same amount of luck as us. If we're lucky, we all have the same idea," Thalia said. They all nodded and headed back towards their horses.

When they reached one of the towers, they were indeed correct about the others having the same idea. Horses were tied to the fences in nearby houses. As they tied up their horses, the squad captain came out of the tower and walked towards them.

"Did you find anything?" she asked.

"Nothing out of the ordinary as far as we could see," Reigner answered. The captain took a breath.

"This doesn't make any sense," she said, obviously irritated. "This place should have been loaded with people, or at least crawling with titans, it just can't be deserted. Also, there's no sign of major destruction, so the titans haven't invaded," she explained.

"So what are we assuming?" Astrid asked.

"Well, nothing really, for now, we'll rest up in the tower and continue scouting the wall tomorrow," she said. They all nodded and headed back into the tower.

Inside was lit with torchlight and it was covered in cots. Some people were already asleep, but some remained awake. Thalia put her things down in a corner and sighed, the three others following.

"This is insane," Astrid said.

"Congrats Ash, you have the honor of being Captain Obvious," Thalia said. Astrid punched her in the shoulder. Thalia smirked.

"She's right though, I mean none of this really makes sense. If you think of this logically, the titans don't really have a way to get in if the wall hasn't been breached and the signal's haven't been made if they found the breach," Bertoldt pointed out.

"You're turning into Armin," Thalia said, rubbing her temples.

"How?" Bertoldt asked.

"You are saying things in a way that takes my brain a while to process," Thalia explained. She then stood up. "I'm going to see if I can see anything from above," she said.

"I'll go with you," Reigner said. They both got up and headed to the ladder that would lead them to the rooftop.

The fresh air was enough to make Thalia smile. It was refreshing, but it didn't block out the worries.

"Do you ever wonder what would have happened if the Colossal Titan didn't appear?" Thalia asked. She heard Reigner sigh. "I mean, would Annie and I have a nice relationship? Would we have joined the Cadets? Mind you, Annie's dad trained us from the very beginning. Would Annie still have made those choices?" Reigner grits his teeth.

"Thalia…" he said.

"Hm?" she asked, turning around. He took a step towards her.

"You know, I'm not afraid of death…I just don't want to be there when it happens. Throughout my time being in the Scouts I realized the most painful deaths and good-bye's are the ones that are never said or never explained. There is more than once choice in life…" Thalia looked at him weird.

"What is your point?" she asked.

"My point is that there isn't always good in everybody, no matter how deep you look. The world is full of lies and you need to know how to separate them from the truth." Reigner walked up to her.

"Thanks for the tip?" she said wearily.

"It's not a tip…but, I came up here to tell you something, because we need your help…" Thalia took a step back.

"We?"

"Five years ago we launched an attack on humanity, hoping to extinguish it," Reigner began. "We managed part of our plan though the rest didn't succeed."

"But there was no attack on-, "she paused. Bertoldt walked up the ladder and stood behind Reigner. "No…you're kidding right?!" Thalia asked. "Please tell me you are joking!?" Reigner shook his head.

"I'm the Armoured Titan, he's the Colossal Titan," he said pointing at Bertoldt. "And we need your help, Thalia, you need to come with us," Reigner said.

"What!? No way! This is ridiculous!" Thalia shouted.

"Thalia please, don't make this into something it doesn't need to be," Bertoldt warned.

"Like what?! You come up here and say 'we are the ones who killed your parents and thousands of other people and we probably will do it again, please come with us'? Do you have any idea how crazy that sounds?! What kind of idiot do you think I am?!" Bertoldt grits his teeth.

"You have left us with no other choice…" Thalia was about to say something more, when the tower shook. Thalia looked over the edge and paled. The tower was surrounded by titans.

 **Thanks for reading! I don't own anything!**


	3. Chapter 3

The Scouts all geared up as quickly as they could.

"How did they get this close!?" Astrid asked, coming up the ladder. She paused when she saw Thalia, Reigner and Bertoldt. They were staring at each other intensely. It looked like electricity was travelling through their gazes. "Uh, guys… we kinda have a little problem…" Astrid said. Scouts flew towards the titans, slaying them in numbers.

Eren and his team wandered the dark plains, frustrated.

"There is no breach," Jean said.

"Also, shouldn't we have met up with the others by now?" Mikasa put in.

"I agree, the wall isn't that big," Armin said. Eren silently voiced his agreement.

"Captain Milo!" a voice called up ahead. A horseman galloped up and he looked panicked. "The squadrons on the east side have been ambushed! The titans are cutting them down by the numbers!" he said.

"That's the squad Astrid, Reigner, Bertoldt and Thalia are in!" Armin said.

"Let's go!" Captain Milo said. They all sped towards the towers.

 _Thalia, please be alive…_ Eren thought.

Only a handful of Scouts were left from the titan attack. The titans were wearing down the tower to the point where it would topple over any minute.

"There's just too many!" Astrid cried. Thalia grits her teeth and whipped around to face Bertoldt and Reigner.

"Is this you're doing?" she hissed.

"What makes you say it was us?" Bertoldt asked.

"Oh, so they appeared randomly after you said, 'you leave us with no other choice'!?" Thalia asked. The 2 said nothing.

"Thalia, they're losing down there! They aren't going to last much longer!" Astrid shouted. Thalia stood there with a shadow cast over her eyes. Now with Bertoldt and Reigner wanting her, it would be easier for them to get to her in titan form.

"Oh, what the hell…" Thalia growled.

"What?" Astrid asked.

"I said…" Thalia started, taking out a pocket knife. "Time to give them hell!" She ran across the platform and jumped off the tower. The titans watched her fall and tried to grab her, but she sliced her hand and lightning struck. The people on the tower all shut their eyes to try and block out the massive yellow blast. Thalia's 17 meter black haired titan appeared once again and she didn't give it a second thought. She screeched and charged right into battle.

Meanwhile, with Eren and the others. They watched the blast die down with shock.

"Who-," started Jean, but was interrupted by a shriek.

"That sounded like Thalia!" Armin said.

"That's because it was Thalia," Mikasa put in. Eren went up to the man who told them about the ambush.

"How many titans are there?" he growled. The man had a look of fear and stepped away. "How many!?" he shouted. Mikasa grabbed his shoulder.

"Eren calm down," she said.

"A-at least 20," he stuttered. Eren's eyes widened, than narrowed.

"She can't take them all by herself…" he mumbled, than he took off in the direction of the lightning blast. Mikasa and Armin didn't hesitate to follow.

"Jaeger!" the captain called. "Crap…" he muttered. He turned to the other Scouts. "Follow them! They're gonna need numbers!" he ordered. The Scouts headed in the same direction.

While running, Jean muttered to himself, "Lovesick basterd."

Thalia tried not to pay attention to all the dead bodies that littered the ground. And all because she didn't act fast enough.

 _"_ _No,"_ Thalia snapped. _"_ _I won't blame myself for this…I blame them_!" she said, glancing at Bertoldt and Reigner. _"_ _Maybe I can fake being on their side? No they're too smart,"_ she cursed. _"_ _They have a plan, but what?"_

Suddenly, she came to realization. _"_ _Wait, could their plan be the same one that Annie was following? But, she was after Eren not me…unless…"_ Thalia's eyes widened. _"_ _Annie kept me a secret! Unless, they never knew about me! My last name was changed!"_ She killed a handful of titans in frustration. _"_ _Those 3 were on the same side from the beginning and that look they shared before the mission…Annie knew…and she never told me! She could have saved all of this from happening! BUT SHE DIDN'T ! Annie, always keeping secrets! Always keeping to herself! But let me ask! WHY!? Why would she defend…_ _ **THESE MONSTERS**_ _!"_ she screeched and raged. She gave the titans her wrath.

"It's working…" Reigner mumbled.

Thalia was in a trance. Slaying as many titans as she could with one move. Kick, punch, break, swing, duck, bite, step. Repeat. She can't last forever. She backed up so she was against the tower. She was steaming and breathing heavily. There were still titans coming and she growled.

"ATTA GIRL!" Astrid shouted. Thalia grunted and looked up. Astrid was smiling proudly, while the rest of the (living) Scouts watched in awe. Reigner and Bertoldt watched her, she couldn't tell what they were thinking.

Thalia stumbled and put her fists up. She was going to win this. She was going to kill these titans and then she was going to kill Reigner and Bertoldt for the sake of humanity. Reigner gave an intense look and all the titans charged at once. They grabbed her arms and legs and gnawed on them. They grabbed her hair, tugging on it, leaving her defenceless.

 _"_ _No…_ " Thalia cursed. She grits her teeth.

"Thalia!" Astrid screamed. Everyone watched horrified as Thalia was feasted upon. "Damnit! We need Eren or Annie!" Astrid said. Thalia screeched and tried to move, but it was no use. "EREN!" Astrid shouted.

Suddenly, a figure swooped over their heads.

"I hear ya!" a voice shouted. Astrid felt like she could cry. She recognized that cocky grin anywhere.

"Eren…" Astrid sighed. "Took you long enough!" Astrid called out. More Scouts swooped in and Eren landed on the ledge.

"You know, timing is everything for me…and I always feel the need to make an entrance," he said, quoting Thalia, before jumping back into the fight.

Reigner and Bertoldt growled.

"This wasn't supposed to happen," Reigner hissed. Bertoldt looked angry, and then he grinned.

"We can still pull this off," he murmured. Reigner turned to him.

"I'm listening…"

The Scouts cut the titans off of Thalia. She could barely move so the Scouts had to defend her best they could. Annie's group eventually joined them and even with them, despite their best efforts, it seemed there were just too many titans. More titans were being attracted by the commotion and the screams of Thalia as she tried to break free from her prison.

Meanwhile, Bertoldt had explained his plan to Reigner.

"You think it will work?" Reigner asked.

"Thalia will be unconscious when she emerges from the carcass, for now we keep the titans coming and in all the chaos, we'll slip away," Bertoldt explained. Reigner nodded.

"We should take Astrid too," he said. Bertoldt raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" Reigner shrugged.

"We don't know how much she heard, can't be too careful," Reigner reasoned. Bertoldt paled.

"Okay, getting Eren angry is one thing, but getting Levi angry…well, I don't exactly plan on finding out," Bertoldt said.

"It's either that or our plan goes up in smoke, which would you rather have happen!?" Reigner asked harshly. Bertoldt sighed.

"Fine…you got the stuff?" Bertoldt asked. Reigner smirked and pulled out a vial with purple liquid in it.

"Always." Bertoldt nodded and looked forward. The only ones remaining on the tower was them and Astrid. Bertoldt unsheathed his blade and walked up to her. Before she could even turn around, Bertoldt hit her on the side of the head with the flat of his blade. It wasn't enough to kill her, just enough to knock her out long enough for their escape.

Bertoldt shook her a bit just to be sure. When he was convinced, he gave Reigner a nod and the blonde jumped over the side of the tower straight towards the unconscious titan that is Thalia Leonheart. He sliced her out of the carcass and pulled her out. Both men climbed on horses with a female in each of their arms and rode off to their destination and then titans not even giving them a second glance. They slipped out unnoticed by anyone…except for the person who used to be part of their plan.

The titan ambush was pushed back and everyone couldn't help but sigh of relief.

"That was insane," Jean said, summing it up. The smoke cleared and everyone heard the hiss of titan steam. They turned to the tower and saw Thalia's titan carcass, but it was already disenagrating.

"Why is it disenagrating?" Armin asked. Mikasa shot her cables at Thalia's titan's head and maneuvered to her nape. She searched the general area of the skin on her nape, but Thalia was nowhere to be found. Mikasa's heart sunk. Had she been eaten?

"Mikasa?!" called Sasha. "Did you find her?!" she asked. Mikasa sighed. She jumped into everyone's view.

"Thalia's gone," Mikasa admitted. Everyone's eyes widened. Eren opened his mouth to speak when Annie's voice rang through them.

"Astrid's gone too," she stated. Everyone looked at her.

"How do you know that?" Eren growled. Annie shrugged.

"Reigner and Bertoldt took them," she said. Everyone was taken back.

"Why would they do that?" Armin asked. Annie took a breath and explained everything and why they took Astrid and Thalia.

Astrid's head throbbed with pain. She groaned and tried to move her hands to rub her eyes and head, but she realized she had them tied and they seemed to be wrapped around something. She was about to say "what the hell?" when she realized she was unable to speak. She seemed to be moving on something. Her eyes snapped open when she realized the thing she was wrapping her arms around had a heartbeat. She saw landscapes racing by and she noticed she was on a horse. Her head was resting on a man's back. She lifted her head and tried wiggling her hands.

"She's awake…" the man said. She felt the vibrations in his chest. She knew the voice, but the question was…why the hell was she tied to him!? "Astrid I can't have you struggling, okay?" That only made her struggle more. "Astrid please!" the man said.

"Hey Bertoldt!" a voice called from her right. "Want me to knock her out for you!?" he asked. Bertoldt responded but Astrid gasped when she saw Reigner. Thalia was unconscious and she was tied the same way she was, arms around Reigner and gag in her mouth, she was also blindfolded. She was steaming…she was also missing a leg. Astrid wanted to cry out her name, but it only came out a whimper. What was going on? Where were the others?

"I know you have questions," Bertoldt said. "I assure you that all will be explained when we arrive at the forest, so please stay calm, we don't want any harm," Bertoldt explained. Astrid took deep breaths and laid her head back on Bertoldt's back. She is exposed and vulnerable, so there is nothing she can do…she hopes they have a good explanation for this. Both men were bigger and stronger and they have the advantage. The best thing she can do is wait it out.

 **I don't own anything except Astrid and Thalia.**


	4. Chapter 4

About 4 people were holding back Eren as he pounced at Annie. His face was twisted with a furious expression, hissing and growls escaped his lips as Mikasa, Jean, Connie and Ymir held him back. Annie was facing the ground, but didn't make any attempt to escape. She knew this was going to happen.

"You bitch!" he snarled. "Why didn't you do anything to stop them!?" The people holding him back stumbled a bit when Eren did a big push.

"Eren please!" Mikasa begged. Armin stepped in front of Eren.

"Eren, Annie was too caught up in trying to survive, she couldn't have done anything," Armin reasoned. Eren paused. "None of us could! For now, we need to focus on finding them!" Armin explained. Eren turned away with a tsk. He shrugged off their hands and glared at Annie.

"Fine, what's the plan?" he asked. Armin stepped up so he could see everyone.

"First, we need to inform Erwin of the situation. Something like this is beyond our power to control and beyond our power to decide, we're going to have to hunt them down," Armin explained. Captain Milo nodded and got on his horse.

"So our plan of action is to find Commander Erwin and explain. Only he can think of a plan that will get the 2 girls back." Everyone followed his lead and climbed on their horses, he started heading out and everybody else followed.

"How are we going to find Reigner and Bertoldt!? They could be anywhere by now!" Eren said. Annie came up beside him.

"They can only go so far before resting. They are planning on taking her to the forest with the big trees. They will rest there until sunset. Reigner will then shift and run the rest of the way to their village," Annie explained. Eren glowered.

"Why though?" Eren asked.

"Look Eren, I don't like this either, I assumed they wouldn't take it this far…I thought I would be able to convince her to come with us and she would be able to convince you, sadly, this isn't the case." Eren ran his hands through his hair.

"Obviously not…what are they planning on doing with her?" he asked. "Also, you were after me, so why did they go for Thalia?"

"They still want you, but I never told them about Thalia and her abilities. I may have broken it off with her, but I didn't want to bring her into this mess I made, I'm not heartless. The plan was to capture you, Eren. Now that Thalia's secret is out in the open, they are planning a different approach," Annie explained.

"But what?" Armin suddenly asked.

"…I don't know," Annie admitted. "After they told me that they wanted to try something else I said I wanted out before they could even explain. I'm sorry, but all I know is this…they need Thalia, and also, they aren't just going to let you off the hook, Eren." Eren didn't react, but he was a little shaken. If what Annie says is true, then Thalia and Astrid are alone with them, and knowing Reigner and Bertoldt, they're restrained and being held captive against their will.

As Thalia rouse from a heavy slumber, she was first aware of the coolness of the air and its fresh fragrance. The ground was lumpy as if she were on a bed of earth and rocks. Her clothes felt damp as a flower in the dew of dawn. She wonders if she's dreaming as she takes in the shafts of light that burst through the gaps in the leaf canopy above. Now she's fully awake, perhaps more than she's ever been. She sat up and instantly regretted it. Black dots appeared in her vision and a pain in her left leg shot up her spine, making her cry out. Her cry was muffled. There was fabric in her mouth, stopping sounds that wanted to escape her lips. She tried to take the gag off, but her hands were binded behind her back. Her pools of grey held panic and alarm. She struggled to undo her binds and she lashed, trying to spit out the gag, however, she stopped when she realized she wasn't alone.

To her left was Astrid who was binded, but didn't have a gag. Thalia wanted to get up and go to her, but she was pulled back by a strong force. She fell backwards groaning when she made impact. She looked back at Astrid and saw her look at her with eyes of desperation. She was scared, but she made no attempt to move toward Thalia. Thalia felt a vibration shoot up the trees trunk once she realized where she was. A few dozen titans clawed at the massive trees. Everything running through Thalia's head was hazy. She barely remembers a thing. The last event she remembers was turning into a titan. She needed someone to fill her in.

"So you're awake." The voice made Thalia stiffen. Memories came flooding in like floodgates opening and water rushing in. Her teeth started gritting together.

 _That's right_ , Thalia growled. _These guys filled me in on their little secret_. She started fidgeting as the ropes binding her grew itchy. Thalia tried to say something, but it came out as, "You batards!" Astrid looked up at them.

"She said, 'you basterds!'" Astrid translated.

"Wat ha hewl do you tink youa doing!?"

"'What the hell do you think you're doing?', "Astrid translated again.

"You can understand what she's saying?" Reigner asked. Astrid nodded. Thalia looked back and forth between the 2 boys and Astrid.

"Wha am I gagged?!" Thalia asked.

"She's asking why she's gagged," Astrid said.

"Yeah, I got that," Reigner said. "We can't have you attracting too much attention," Reigner explained. Thalia glared. She looked down at her streaming stump of a leg.

"Wha do you wa?" she asked.

"She says, 'what do you want?'" Reigner sighed.

"I told you, we need your help. If you had come with us willingly, this all could have been avoided. Instead, you were being stubborn," Reigner said. Bertoldt came in.

"We've filled Astrid in already about everything we told you."

"Wha did you ta Astid?" Thalia asked.

"We didn't know how much she heard and we wanted to leave as many people clueless as we could," Reigner explained. Thalia rolled her eyes. She started squirming in the bindings again, feeling rashes spread on her wrists. They were smart to tie her up, she'll give them that.

 _Taking away my only advantage, you smart basterds. I honestly wouldn't dare shift, titans have taken an interest in us. I'm not as suicidal as Eren._ At the thought of her boyfriend, she felt a pang of pain and worry. _Knowing the Scouts, they've realized Astrid and I are missing. No doubt they are on a vicious search for us_ , Thalia thought.

Meanwhile, Bertoldt and Reigner were in a conversation.

"You sure Thalia won't try anything?" Bertoldt asked. Reigner rolled his eyes at the taller boy.

"You're being paranoid. Thalia has been backed into a corner. She knows the risks if she tries anything. Astrid would get caught up in it all and she would cause a commotion, thus decreasing their chance of survival because I'll need to transform, fight Thalia, get Astrid and fight off titans all at the same time." Reigner glanced at Thalia. "She's at a disadvantage, look at her," he said. Bert looked at Thalia, who was glaring at the two shifters. "Look at her eyes. She's trapped, backed into a corner, out of options. She knows the situation she's in and she knows the consequences. See her eyes? They're alert and panicked, but she's also theorizing, thinking…planning. She's trying to think of the outcomes if she acts. She's in the dark and she knows it." Bert looked at Thalia, worried. He then squinted…looking deeper into Thalia's grey orbs. There was another emotion there, something stronger and more intense. It was small, but there.

"She's afraid…" Bert whispered. "She's scared." Reigner looked at him.

"Of course she's scared," he said. "Come on, sunset is almost upon us and I don't want to fail so close to the end," Reigner said, sitting down. Bertoldt soon followed.

"I'll keep watch," Bert said. "If worse comes to worst you'll be the one transforming," he explained. Reigner nodded and laid down. Bertoldt's eyes shifted to Astrid and Thalia. Thalia's leg was healing nicely, but her wrists were also steaming. The ropes restraining her were cutting and burning her skin. Astrid looked up at him.

"Please let me go to her. She's in pain and I can tell by the look in her eyes that she's scared." Bertoldt hopped onto the branch the two girls were on.

"Aren't you scared?" he asked her. Astrid smiled sadly.

"I…" she sighed. "I trust you, even though I know who you are, I can't help but trust you. I know you aren't going to kill me and also…" she looked deep into his eyes. "I know that I am not the one you are after," she said.

"How do I know you won't escape?" he asked. Astrid raised an eyebrow.

"You really think I stand a chance against you?" She had a point. "She's in pain and she's restrained, why worry? She can't transform and none of us dare make a move, there are titans down there and…you took our 3D Maneuver Gear…" Astrid said. Bertoldt sight and walked over, cutting the rope that was keeping her bind to the tree, but the cuffs restraining her, he left alone. It was good enough for Astrid, though just when Astrid got up a smoke signal went off in the distance. Their eyes widened. The sound was enough to wake Reigner. He grumbled as he got up.

"Can't a man get some sleep?" Reigner looked at Astrid and glared. "Did you call them?" he asked. Astrid rolled her eyes.

"When the hell would I have time to call them?"

 **Sorry for the short chapter. Don't own anything except for Thalia and Astrid.**


End file.
